- UK joins international efforts to mobilise funding and
practical delivery in Gaza through EU initiative
- New UK funding for UN-coordinated early recovery activity and
reinforcing Palestinian-led efforts
- Foreign Secretary to push for fresh momentum behind the
20-point-plan at Brussels meeting bringing together international
partners to support Gaza
New support to help Palestinians in Gaza begin to rebuild their
lives will be announced by the UK today (13 July), as the Foreign
Secretary calls for urgent international action on the 20-point
Gaza peace plan.
Speaking at the Palestine Donor Group in Brussels, she will say
the humanitarian crisis in Gaza remains desperate, with
families still unable to access the shelter,
food, medicine and basic services they need because of
ongoing Israeli restrictions on vital aid.
To address this, the UK is announcing £10m early support for the
UN Horizon Fund which is enabling a Palestinian-led,
UN-coordinated approach to early recovery working alongside
key European and international partners to support water and
sanitation, health, education, housing,
debris clearance and explosive ordnance risk reduction.
Rebuilding these foundations will be crucial to delivering the
two-state solution that is the only way to deliver lasting peace.
The UK will also join the EU-led Team Gaza Initiative, a
coalition of international partners designed to mobilise
political support, funding and practical delivery for
Gaza's early recovery. The initiative brings together European
countries and institutions, alongside allies and aims to support
a package worth 750m. The move underscores the UK's commitment to
working closely with European allies to tackle evolving global
challenges.
Today's meeting, co-chaired by the European Union and the
Palestinian Authority, brings together international partners to
coordinate political, technical and financial support
for Palestinians, including support for Gaza's early recovery and
implementation of the 20-Point Plan.
The Foreign Secretary will use her intervention to underline the
huge risks to the plan and the need to go further and
faster. She will add it is at risk of being completely de-railed
if Israeli restrictions on humanitarian aid and vital services
are not urgently lifted, and if new international energy is not
provided to support the plan.
Since the ceasefire, there has been some improvement in the level
of aid entering Gaza, but it still remains insufficient to the
level of need, however it is clear that food shortages remain,
1.7 million people are living in overcrowded displacement
sites across Gaza, and healthcare faces a worsening crisis
with no fully functioning hospitals in the strip. The Foreign
Secretary will warn that humanitarian support was supposed
to be part of phase one of the peace process and unless it is
delivered the rest of the peace plan risks running into the
ground. More than 1000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed
since the peace plan was agreed.
Foreign Secretary said:
Palestinians in Gaza need to be able to rebuild their lives and
their communities. Yet the scale of destruction
is devastating, and the pace of support despite all the
promises made in the peace plan is still shockingly slow. The
scale of continuing Israeli restrictions on humanitarian aid and
on basic shelter and healthcare support is deeply destructive and
immoral. The international community needs to come together as we
did last Autumn to drive pressure for progress before the rest of
the peace plan is derailed.
The UK is steadfast in our support for early recovery and a
Palestinian-led reconstruction. Our new support for the
UN Horizon Fund and the Team Gaza Initiative will help coordinate
international efforts, back practical recovery work on the ground
and support Palestinians.
We need to see progress across the board - including making sure
the new transitional Palestinian committee can operate properly
in Gaza so that Palestine is run by Palestinians, starting the
decommissioning of Hamas weapons, and training Palestinian police
officers. But humanitarian support was supposed to be part of
phase one, and it should never be withheld.
There can be no lasting peace without a credible path to a
two-state solution, with a secure Israel alongside a viable,
sovereign Palestinian state. The UK will continue to work with
the Palestinian Authority, the UN, the EU and regional
partners to support that goal.
The Foreign Secretary will also meet Palestinian Authority Prime
Minister Mohammad Mustafa to discuss support for Palestinian
institutions, early recovery in Gaza and continued international
coordination.
The UK will continue to push for new energy behind the peace
plan, greater action against trade with illegal settlements, and
stronger action against those who are trying to destroy any
chance of a two-state solution that is the only way to deliver
security, peace and justice for Israelis and Palestinians alike.
